Texas hoping to erase painful 63-14 OU memory

Published 5:30 am, Tuesday, October 2, 2001

For the Texas Longhorns, that day will live in infamy, forever remembered for its shocking result.

The Eyes of Texas were blackened.

On that cold, misty afternoon in Dallas, Texas was battered, bruised and beaten soundly by the Oklahoma Sooners.

63-14. The Longhorns say their lives have not been the same in the year that has passed.

"It got so bad that I was in class, and I asked for this girl's (phone) number, and she told me, `Not till y'all beat Oklahoma,' " defensive tackle Marcus Tubbs said.

Texas gets that chance Saturday in Dallas, when the two rivals meet for the 96th time in a 101-year-old rivalry. Regardless of what happens this year, the result of last year's game is something the Longhorns are not likely to forget any time soon.

"You lose like we lost last year, it's going to haunt you year round," Tubbs said. "I know I think about Oklahoma a little bit each day. You can't lose to Oklahoma like that.

"I was (thinking), `Are they ever going to stop scoring? Can we do anything to stop 'em? Is the game going to be over soon? How much time is left?' Everything was going through my mind. I thought: `I don't want to show my face when I get back to school.' "

63-14. Linebacker De'Andre Lewis found it difficult to show his face around the old neighborhood this past year.

The Aldine grad could not make a trip back to Acres Homes without someone mentioning the OU loss. He said he couldn't even count the number of times it was brought up.

"If I tell you, I'd be talking to you for days," Lewis said. "From Texas fans to OU fans in Houston to people from Nimitz High School ... there's been a lot of talk."

The worst incident Lewis recalls came this past spring as he was shopping for his son Zion, who turns 1 today, at Toys R Us in Austin.

A kid Lewis estimates to be about 6 years old recognized him and excitedly asked for his autograph.

Redding said he couldn't imagine laughing at what happened. Actually, he really can't remember much of what happened.

"The only thing that sticks in my head is 63-14. That's all I remember," Redding said.

Those numbers do stand out.

"I've never even lost a video game that bad," linebacker Everick Rawls said.

In some ways, it was traumatic.

"When it hit 42-0, we were dead," quarterback Chris Simms said. "I really think some of our guys went into shock."

According to Simms, the shock lasted some time. When he and receivers Roy Williams and B.J. Johnson went to dinner after the bus ride back to Austin, they sort of sat in shock, not knowing what to think or say.

That kind of memory doesn't fade easily.

"Ever since that game was over with, I couldn't wait for this year to start and for us to play them again," Redding said. "All during offseason workouts, every day you have to think a little about OU. So it's a long time coming."

63-14. Since the day described by Mack Brown as his worst as a coach, Texas has won 10 of 11 games, with its lone loss being a nail-biter to Top-10 ranked Oregon in the Holiday Bowl.

Brown said the Oklahoma loss was the worst and best thing that has happened to his staff since they have been at Texas.

His players agree.

"I can't sit there and say I never think about it," Lewis said. "You always have that game in the back of your mind. That's one of the reasons we came out and fought so well after that -- because wedidn't want to experience anything like thatagain."

63-14. It is that experience that has the Longhorns itching to get on the Cotton Bowl field to earn redemption. Revenge is a word the Longhorns took special care not to use in their Monday news conference, but it is the word that best describes their feeling about this week's contest.

"I'm real anxious for this game," Lewis said. "We've been talked down about and talked about this last year. They had the bragging rights. They beat our butts, then they won the national championship. So they had the bragging rights.

"We have to go out there to handle business and be prepared to fight, because they're going to come out there to fight. They're not going to just lay down and give it back to us easily. We have to go out there and take it.

"I'm sure they think that we're not going to be ready to play or that we're weak. They beat us badly last year, so I don't think they really have that much respect for us. We have to go out there and make sure we take our respect back.

"This game is about a lot of things. It's about heart, respect. And it's about letting them know who you are."

And if it's at all possible, it's about expunging Oklahoma 63, Texas 14.

Revenge is tough

Oklahoma posted the most points ever scored in its 101-year series with Texas in a 63-14 win over the Longhorns last year. OU has posted the five largest margins of victory in the series and went on to win three of the first four rematches. The biggest wins in the series and what happened the following year: